Minutes:
Moved by Councillor Patel, seconded by Councillor Joshi and carried:
4. Councillor Rita Patel
“My Lord Mayor, City Mayor, distinguished guests and honoured guests, may I also take this opportunity Lord Mayor to congratulate you on being elected to this high office.
On behalf of the whole council I wish to move a motion of thanks to the outgoing Lord Mayor Councillor John Thomas, who has done such a brilliant job for Leicester for the last twelve months.
I know that I also speak for the many that have met and worked with Councillor Thomas over the past year when I express our sincere thanks to him for his service as Lord Mayor and the work he has done as the first citizen of our great city.
I am sure you will all know that John has served the city faithfully for over 17 years as a ward councillor and you will be aware that his vast experience and knowledge together with his love of our city have served him well during his year as the Lord Mayor. During the last 12 months he has worked tirelessly to represent and promote our wonderful city starting with his civic service at Leicester Cathedral which was attended by over 100 guests.
This year has been a momentous year for Leicester, in particular when the Lord Mayor joined dignitaries from across the county to receive the remains of King Richard III at Leicester Cathedral in March for the service of compline, reinterment and reveal. The service of compline was attended by the Duke of Gloucester whilst the Countess of Wessex and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester attended the service of reinterment. Guests from all over the world visited the city of Leicester on this unique occasion and it has indeed been a tremendous year for the city and our Lord Mayor.
There have also been many other highlights during the year including the Royal visit from Princess Anne who visited Satchels, the hand-made leather satchel manufacturer in Charter Street.
During the year John has hosted two homecoming parades for the return of troops from the 9th and 12th Royal Lancers and the Royal Anglian Regiment. There have also been several anniversaries such as the armed forces day service and parade and the World War I commemoration and the 74th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.
Various charity events including a 5 a side football match, sponsored rowing event, quiz evenings and the Lord Mayor’s Black Tie charity dinner have been held to raise funds for the Lord Mayor’s Appeal. This year the appeal supported 3 charities: the Leicester Sea Cadets, Prostrate Cancer UK and Silver Star Diabetes. Currently we have raised approximately £21,000 but in addition we are hoping to receive a significant donation from the Foxes Foundation.
Other significant events which John has attended as Lord Mayor include the Holocaust Memorial day in January this year and the Workers Memorial day ceremony which took place in the Town Hall Square in April.
Throughout the year 15 people have been made Hereditary Freemen of Leicester and 15 nominees have been presented with Honoured Citizens awards, in particular I would like to mention John Roberts the overall winner of the Honoured Citizen of the Year award, a former drug addict who has created the DVD entitled “Dear Albert” which captures his life and the extremely valuable work he is doing as a recovery consultant and I would thoroughly recommend everyone to make a point of seeing that video if you get the opportunity.
As Lord Mayor John has embraced the true diversity of our city and he has visited a total of 10 schools and 32 houses of faith including mosques, churches, temples, gurdwaras and other places of worship throughout the city.
Leicester has always welcomed visitors from abroad and John has welcomed overseas visitors from Denmark, France, Germany, India, Jamaica, Namibia and Spain during his mayoral year.
I would like also to pay tribute to those who have supported John as our Lord Mayor and no doubt he will have a few words to say on this subject himself. Throughout his term of office he has been most ably supported by Councillor Ted Cassidy the Deputy Lord Mayor, Councillor Stephen Corrall the High Bailiff and last but by no means least by Margaret who as his consort has done such a magnificent job and been a great support to him during the year, I know.
I think that you will agree that John has been a tremendous ambassador for our city and we have all been impressed by the enthusiasm and good humour, with which he has carried out his mayoral duties. We are all very grateful to him for the wonderful work he has done for this beloved city of ours.
In moving this resolution of thanks it is right that we all now join together to celebrate the service of Councillor John Thomas as the Lord Mayor, the first citizen of this great city of Leicester and thank him for his hard work, his commitment and the dignity he has brought to the office throughout his mayoral year as a Chair of our proceedings here in the Council.
Thank-you, my Lord Mayor.”
Councillor Rashmi Joshi
“My Lord Mayor, City Mayor, distinguished and honoured guests may I also take this opportunity in thanking you and also to congratulate you on the appointment of the Lord Mayor of Leicester city for the ensuing year. I know you will make a great Lord Mayor for this city and I am so very pleased that you have chosen Veejay Sharma as your consort and congratulations to you as well.
My Lord Mayor I second the motion proposed by Councillor Rita Patel.
Thank-you.”